You know that feeling when you finally feel like all your hard work has paid off? I was that happy the other day.
I'm Ella, a marketing supervisor at a large company. I've been working there for five years—overtime, staying up late, meetings, even lunch breaks—I've done it all. So when Sir Salvador (yes, our boss is a bit intimidating but has a date), invited me to a social restaurant to discuss my promotion, well, I was a little excited. I thought, this is it! Finally!
As soon as we entered the place, I felt like I was in another world—white tablecloths, chandeliers, and waiters who moved like ninjas, moving silently. We ordered food, and while we were eating, the boss kept praising my work. “You’re doing great, Ella. Your last campaign was awesome.”
Me, just smile. Hallo, this is true!
But that's it. At the end of the meal, he suddenly said, "Ella, I want to promote you... but you have to prove your loyalty first."
I blinked for a moment. Loyalty? What is this, a loyalty test?
“It's simple,” he said. “You pay for our lunch.”
Huh? Excuse me? The total is ₱25,000! If I had known, we would have just gone to Jollibee.
But okay. I smiled. Paid. Even though my credit card seemed to cry.
I thought it was over. But it's not.
A few days later, he asked me to sign documents. I looked at them—financial reports with numbers wrong. Very wrong.
He said, “Just adjust it. It’s just a formality.” But I knew, this wasn’t a simple adjustment—the numbers were rigged!
And that's when I realized: Oh, it's not just an expensive lunch that's the issue... this boss is being a bit silly.
I refused. I didn't sign even though he said, "Many people have lost their jobs because they were stubborn."
I researched every night. I gathered evidence—emails, voice recordings, everything needed to prove that the boss was hiding something.
Until I sent an anonymous email to the audit team. Boom. Just a week later, there was an investigation. And there it was, the bultong-bultong nonsense was discovered—Sir even had an offshore account!
He was escorted out of the office. It was shocking.
Then, guess what? They offered me the boss position. I was supposed to be a manager!
But you know, I didn't accept. I gave the recommendation to David—our quiet analyst who was always overlooked but was so hardworking and talented. He was the one who deserved it.
Sometimes, promotion isn't the measure of success. Sometimes, choosing the right thing, even if it's difficult—’yon ang tunay na panalo.
